Fractured Ink
by Illusiax3
Summary: 'Raising my cupped hands I held the water delicately. The edges of my mouth curved in a smile as the water rose into tiny drops. The water evenly dispersed in a quick swift move. Dustfinger grinned reaching out to hold the tiny drops of sunlit water' Willow is a elemental fearie who is swept away in the world of the Folcharts the night Dustfinger shows up. (Follows Book)


_Flashbacks are in Italics_

* * *

I nudged my pillow gently with my face inhaling the deep rich scent of shampoo. Closing my eyes I listened to the gentle sound of rain against the windowpane. A dog whined in the distance, not content with the rain. A light flickered in the corner of my vision and I rolled over to see its' source.

"Willow?" A soft voice called out and I mumbled a reply into my pillow only half aware of my surroundings. Lifting an eyebrow in question I glanced into a single flame of a candle as Meggie reach over to shake me again.

I whispered a quick 'shh' before returning to admiring my pillows' softness through a sleepy haze. Meggie sighed before opening our small bedroom door. The sound of footsteps echoed down the hall. Meggie looked through the crack in the door before bounding across the room and leaping under her covers after quickly blowing out her candle.

Mos' footsteps stopped outside Meggies' door before he swung it completely open.

"Why does it smell of vanilla, Meggie?" he accused teasingly. Mo had never liked the smell of smoke. No matter in what shape or form.

"The books were whispering to me." She admitted calmly, "I thought you had grown older." Mo accused again.

"Nope, same old immature Meggie." The corners of my mouth twitched into a smile, which soon turned into a yawn.

"I'm not that old." Meggie laughed.

"Willow? Why are you in here? Or never mind. Just get some sleep you two." Mo shook his head before closing the door and walking back down the hallway to his study without so much as a goodnight.

Meggie huffed retrieving her book before setting it on the floor to relight her candle, "Did you here that?" I asked my eyes opening wide. Suddenly I was wide awake, "I didn't hear anything." Meggie shrugged half heartedly before skimming through her book, "I'm going to go check it out." I declared tossing the linen sheet to the side, "If you get caught, don't say I didn't tell you so." Meggie mumbled her eyes never leaving her pages.

"I'm also supposed to be asleep in the living room. So if I am caught I'll just say you kicked me out." I looked back to see her roll her eyes.

Ruffling my hair with a yawn, I shuffled passed Mos' study towards the kitchen. Opening the fridge I retrieved a can of cola before making my way towards the living room. Laying my head against the windowpane I stared at the dimly lit street. Maybe I had imagined it? Perhaps my mind was playing tricks on me? Slowly my eyes fluttered closed. Another yawn escaped me as I leaned back. Looking into the street I noticed a man standing near the lamppost. Furrowing my brow I stepped closer not being able to make out his features. My breath fogged the window in an uneven circle. I blinked up at the rain droplets on the windowpane. When I looked back he was gone. Shaking my head I cracked open my can of pop, incredibly thirsty all of a sudden.

"Willow?" Meggie hissed her eyes strained against the dark looking towards my make shift bed on the couch.

"It was nothing, I'm on my way." I shook my head marching back to her room in defeat. A knock sounded on the front door and I stopped dead in my tracks, "Meggie?" I called swearing she had left. No longer as confident, when nobody replied I slowly turned back to the living room, staring at the front door. The knock sounded again and I went to open the door. My hand hovered over the door handle. Feeling silly I turned the knob slowly. In one quick motion I whipped open the door.

"Dustfinger." I whispered.

* * *

"Willow." He replied; his leather jacket plastered to his shoulders along with his travel bag.

"Why are you here?" I frowned.

"Are you going to question me or let me into the house?" He raised an eyebrow stepping around me into the house.

"You can't be here!" I bit my lip at the sight of the scars across his face. His dirty blonde hair fell covering where my curious eyes burned into his cheek as he looked down at me. He had been so young when I lost saw him, scared and shivering at the time he had given me his jacket.

Suddenly I felt very self-conscious. Looking down I realized I was only wearing a pair of large sweats and half a tee shirt with pain splatters. I wrapped my arms against my chest shivering from the breeze after barely escaping Capricorn. I stepped past him and shut the door, abandoning my cola can on the hardwood floor.

"You've changed child." He noted his eyes looked me over before he shuffled his weight around embarrassed. He wasn't the scrawny teenager I had knew at the time. His hair had grown longer and my fingers burned to brush it out of his face.

"I'm not a child anymore." I glared half jokingly at him.

"I've… noticed." He coughed into his sleeve and I stared down. Last time he saw me I was nothing more then a little girl. Not even curvy hipped. Now I was twenty-one, my hair had naturally turned deep cherry red contradicting my light blue eyes

"Willow. Meggie. I thought I told you-" Mo rounded the corner the sight of us made him stop dead in his tracks.

"Dustfinger." He nodded, "What are you doing here? I thought I made it clear for you to stay away from my family."

"Silvertongue, as I remember the rules apply to all of us." He raised an eyebrow glancing in my direction.

"What's going on?" Meggie called from her room.

"She can't see you!" I hissed, "Get in there and keep quiet." Quickly I opened the shoe cupboard. He gave me a annoyed look and rolling my eyes with a tiny shrug I pushed him inside. I leaned against the cupboard clicking it shut just as Meggie rounded the corner of the hallway.

"What's going on?" She repeated looking between Mo and I.

"I thought…" I blurted out then wasn't sure on what to say. I looked for Mo desperate for an instant lie.

"I thought I heard s - someone trying to b - break in." I stuttered, "I called for Mo."

"Must have been a cat." He added.

"So you're coming back then?" Meggie asked pointing behind her with her thumb.

"Actually I'm going to stay and sleep on the couch so I don't keep you up." Meggie looked at me accusingly before finally agreeing to go straight to bed.

We waited in silence until we were sure she wasn't listening.

"Okay, you can come out now." I whispered opening the cupboard. Dustfinger stumbled out a couple of jackets hangers fell behind him and I held my breath waiting for Meggie to appear.

"That was wonderful." Dustfinger murmured.

Something seemed out of place though. His words were quick and to the point yet worry and pain covered his face.

"You're hurt." I stated as he shifted from side to side on his feet, favoring his right leg.

"It's fine." He nodded to me as if I wasn't even worth his time. Rolling my eyes I went to the bathroom to dig through the cupboards. I strained to listen to the voices in the hallway as Mos' angry hiss silenced Dustfinger. I could hear them arguing. Opening the last drawer I found what I was looking for before returning to the living room.

"If that's what he wants, it's what he gets. Or do you remember Silvertongue?" Dustfinger lowered his voice back to a threatening whisper.

"What am I supposed to do? Move again? Meggies' suspicious and frankly I don't want to be the one to tell her I've been lying to her all of her life? What about Willow? She knows so little. For God's sake she's not even related to us!" Mo accused the questions flowing out of him.

"If you have something to say to me, say it to my face." I cut in, "Sit down and roll up your pant leg." I cut in and Dustfingers' gaze barely lifted high enough as he looked at the items in my hand nervously.

"Where should I go?" Mo questioned after an awkward silence, watching as I dabbed peroxide into a cut on Dustfingers leg.

"Capricorns' men are camped in the north, you should head down south at your first chance."

"How can I trust you?" Mo's voice rose once again.

"I'm all you have." He replied gravely, "Meggie." He looked over my shoulder and I could almost picture her in her ruffled pajamas standing in the hallway. Then I could picture her expression at the scene before her. Me leaning in from of a strangely scarred man, binding his wounds while Mo looked on the scene in utter shock. No, I couldn't turn around and see her.

"What the bloody hell is going on?"

"Willow." Dustfinger warned, "You aren't strong enough. You're a elemental fea, using a memory block isn't-"

"Natural, I know. It's a magician's trick. Not a fearies'." I growled.

"Willow, what are you doing?" Mo threw himself in front of Meggie.

"That night you made me put a memory block inside of her. I can't let her see Dustfinger." I looked down at Mos' feet.

"Do you remember the fact that it almost killed you?" Dustfinger growled.

"I'm older and stronger."

"How do you know?"

"Willow? What's going on?" Meggie hid behind Mo and I could see her legs shaking. She followed my gaze and forced herself to stop a tiny hiccup escaping her.

"How do you know this won't go wrong?" Mo hissed, "Wait – you've done it before?" He took a step closer threateningly.

_ "Oh no, it's dead." Meggie cried turning her rose around in its' vase._

"_No it isn't." I laughed lightly, "It's still alive just, asleep." Grabbing the base of the vase I let my mind empty concentrating on the life source of the flower. Feeling its' life source I reached out with my mind urging it to come forth. The edge of my mouth curved up in a smile the life force danced around my fingertips; opening my eyes I saw Meggies expression of terror. I looked down at her rose which was returning to its' original deep red._

_ "What? What's wrong?" I cried, "Monster!" She cried, "Mo! Mo!"_

_ "No!" I shook my head, bile and panic rose within me, the rose started to wither as my panic grew. Looking at the rose I screamed as the rose burst into ashes. Scared I dropped the vase. Everything seemed to flash in slow motion down to the glass vase shattering. Water sprayed my legs and I looked down to see blood pooling in the spilt water. My legs were full of scratches some deeper then others, my pants completely torn to shreds, slowly I backed up into the wall behind me. Crying I fell on my tailbone, I could hear Meggie screaming for Mo in the other room. I knew he wouldn't come because I was house siting._

_ "Willow." Through my tears I could see a person standing at the door holding Meggie, threes year old crying into his shoulder. Then just like that he was gone. _

_ "Meggie? Meggie!" I screamed, forcing myself onto my feet I went to take my first step but before I could the man was in front of me. Wiping my eyes with the sleeve of my hoodie. _

_ "You have to make her forget."_

_ "Dusty." I whispered._

_ "Please."_

"Whoa. Whoa. Whoa." Dustfinger stepped in front of me holding his hands out.

"Stop it you guys. You." I pointed at Dustfinger, "Don't ever try to protect me from my family again. You're all being overdramatic."

Reaching up I grabbed onto Dustfingers' hand and cursed as his palm was searing hot. It was as if I had put my palm flat against a stovetop. Stepping around him I made my way over to Meggie. Not wanting to hurt his feelings by cringing. Looking between her and Mo I watched as he held her hand, entwining his fingers with her. Mo nodded and I set my hand on her forehead,

"Be brave."

* * *

_Chapter Two – Preview – Vanish_

_Dusfinger_

_ "Meggie!" Mo cried catching her in his arms as she fell into unconsciousness. I watched as Willow turned to look at me, her eyes once light blue were nothing but swirls of blue and white. Hesitantly I reached out to her. She gazed at my hand before raising her own,"Come back to me." I whispered, Slowly almost as if hypnotized she placed her palm against mine. I felt the pull of magic escaping from her through our hands into me, something so pure and deadly, lowering my hand I broke the connection. __A shudder raked through her body, tearing off my jacket which had completely dried I wrapped it around her shoulders._ I held her close to my chest, I felt her heartbeat against mine, with a cough she looked up to me, her eyes swirled a few times before the magic dissolved from her.

* * *

A/N: Thank you all for making it this far! Every chapter preview will be in Dustfingers point of view. Though the actual chapters will be written in Willows point of view. Please feel free to review, I don't bite! Next chapter won't be so serious, I promise. I plan on keeping a steady update on this story in particular. Hopefully I'll see you next time! :)

DISCLAIMER – I do not own Inkheart by Cornelia Funke or any characters you recognize. I do own Willow and her story.


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